Spring Break
Boys' Night: Girls aren't the only ones who should have a night out to themselves
John Bailey
Issue date: 10/21/08 Section: Focus
Men are troubled people. You wouldn't know it - I don't think - but they are. Most of them are, at least, and the ones that aren't probably just aren't paying attention.
And who wouldn't be? Life is rough on everyone sometimes. Both Men and women have bad things that happen, hard times they can't shrug off. You have a tough exam, you've got bedhead or you get hit by a tour bus. It happens.
But here's the thing: men don't get to talk about it. Women have a self-sufficient support network, also known as "girls night," where they go off into a room somewhere and have underwear pillow fights and experiment with their sexuality. I mean, right? Isn't that what happens?
No, but seriously, women can talk to each other about their problems. If something's wrong, you can bet that two close female friends will be able to open up and talk to each other about it - at least a little, probably just enough to get pissed off and catty about it, but at least they're talking. Us men get to drink beer and play video games. Sometimes we burp or grunt.
"Men are constrained by standards that they have to adhere to in public," said Dan Emmons, a 5th-semester electrical engineering major. "Being able to be around other guys who understand the situation you're in is important for de-stressing and being yourself."
Emmons highlights a serious problem among men. On an average Friday night, the interpersonal connections get about this deep:
"Hey, man. How you doin'?"
"Pretty good. Yeah."
"Yeah, cool. Halo?"
That's us. Anything more, one iota of connective feeling injected into the room and we turn and run in terror, clutching our beers and fearing for our privates.
Of course, we can talk to women just fine. We can be nice to women. We can pour out our hearts and listen earnestly and share intimate secrets and air all those hopes, dreams and fears that live in the monster-infested closets of our imagination. And hey, we like that. Many women, I'm sure, have had boyfriends who seemed friendly, open and communicative, but who turned into little clams when around their male buddies. Big secret: most men really do like to gossip, and most men actually do have an awful lot of feelings.
And who wouldn't be? Life is rough on everyone sometimes. Both Men and women have bad things that happen, hard times they can't shrug off. You have a tough exam, you've got bedhead or you get hit by a tour bus. It happens.
But here's the thing: men don't get to talk about it. Women have a self-sufficient support network, also known as "girls night," where they go off into a room somewhere and have underwear pillow fights and experiment with their sexuality. I mean, right? Isn't that what happens?
No, but seriously, women can talk to each other about their problems. If something's wrong, you can bet that two close female friends will be able to open up and talk to each other about it - at least a little, probably just enough to get pissed off and catty about it, but at least they're talking. Us men get to drink beer and play video games. Sometimes we burp or grunt.
"Men are constrained by standards that they have to adhere to in public," said Dan Emmons, a 5th-semester electrical engineering major. "Being able to be around other guys who understand the situation you're in is important for de-stressing and being yourself."
Emmons highlights a serious problem among men. On an average Friday night, the interpersonal connections get about this deep:
"Hey, man. How you doin'?"
"Pretty good. Yeah."
"Yeah, cool. Halo?"
That's us. Anything more, one iota of connective feeling injected into the room and we turn and run in terror, clutching our beers and fearing for our privates.
Of course, we can talk to women just fine. We can be nice to women. We can pour out our hearts and listen earnestly and share intimate secrets and air all those hopes, dreams and fears that live in the monster-infested closets of our imagination. And hey, we like that. Many women, I'm sure, have had boyfriends who seemed friendly, open and communicative, but who turned into little clams when around their male buddies. Big secret: most men really do like to gossip, and most men actually do have an awful lot of feelings.
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